If you’ve been injured due to someone else’s negligence, whether in an auto accident, a slip-and-fall on an unsafe property, or using a defective product, it can significantly impact your livelihood. Depending on the severity of your injuries, you may need to take a substantial amount of time off work to recover, or you may be unable to continue working altogether. As the bills pile up, you may wonder whether you can seek compensation for your future lost wages. Please continue reading and contact a seasoned Morris County Personal Injury Attorney to learn how we can help you fight for the compensation you need.
How Do I Know If I Can Sue for a Loss of Future Wages in New Jersey?
Firstly, when you’ve been injured due to another party’s negligence, it’s crucial to understand the type of compensation you can seek in a personal injury claim to ensure you receive the justice you deserve. Generally, you can seek compensation for your economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are intended to compensate victims for their tangible losses, while non-economic damages are designed to compensate victims for their subjective losses. Economic damages may include medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, household services, vocational rehabilitation, etc. On the other hand, non-economic damages may consist of pain and suffering, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life, mental anguish, loss of consortium, etc.
As you can see, you seek compensation for your lost wages. Lost wages represent the money you would have earned from working if you hadn’t been injured. Essentially, it’s the money you’re missing out on because your injuries have hindered or diminished your ability to continue working. It’s crucial to understand that lost wages can include the wages you’ve already earned but couldn’t receive due to being unable to work and the income you would have received if you hadn’t sustained your injuries. Therefore, if you’re unable to work for a set period, able to work- but can’t fulfill the duties of your old position, or can never return to work because of your injuries, you can seek compensation for your lost future wages.
How Can I Prove Lost Future Earnings?
When you suffer injuries that prevent you from working, you miss out on more than just your weekly paychecks. Your injuries can prevent you from receiving promotions, raises, or even changing jobs for better pay in the future. In addition, your job may offer benefits like health insurance and retirement contributions. Therefore, gathering as much evidence as possible to prove your lost wages.
Unfortunately, it can be difficult to prove lost wages because there’s usually some speculation surrounding whether or not you will ever be able to return to work. To maximize your chances of receiving the compensation you’re entitled to for your future lost earnings, you must showcase evidence of pre-injury income and employment status, your earning capacity before the injury, your career trajectory and potential for advancement, as well as benefits and bonuses you may have received if you hadn’t suffered your injuries. This can help demonstrate the accident’s impact on your professional life.
If you or someone you love has suffered an injury due to someone else’s negligence, please don’t hesitate to contact a trusted attorney from Lutz Injury Law, who can help you fight for the just compensation you deserve and need to get your life back on track.